The Church Multiplies – Acts 1:1-11

JOYFUL MULTIPLICATION

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

Acts: 1:1-11 NASB

1The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach,2 until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen.3 To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God.4 Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,”He said, “you heard of from Me;5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

6 So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?”7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority;8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

9 And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.10 And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them.11 They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into [i]the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”

OUTLINE

The Savior v. 1:1-3

The Spirit v. 1:4-5

The Saints v. 1:6-8

The Shock v. 1:9-11

QUESTIONS

Jesus is the center and star of the story. The Enemy’s original lie is that you can be the center and star of the story. In what areas do you find yourself wanting to be the star? How does this manifest itself and how does that impact your relationships? Who helps you see when you are trying to be the star of your own story? What would it look like to surrender and submit to the true star of the story?

“Baptized in the Holy Spirit” can be a loaded phrase. What is your reaction when you hear it? We all identify with something and derive power from something – we are immersed in it. What are you immersed in? HINT: You think about it a lot, you talk about it a lot, you become defensive if it is threatened or attacked. v. 1:4-5

Jesus promised us the power to carry out His mission of being His witnesses (which is simply telling the story of what He’s done in our lives). How has the work of Jesus continued to change your story?What keeps you from sharing your story of His work? What is a step you can take toward sharing? v. 1:6-11